As pro-Palestinian protests continue at Manhattan’s Columbia University, the school’s Catholic chaplain said the behavior of some protestors was “ugly, as some in the crowds chant and behave in ways inimical to peace on campus, in the Middle East, or anywhere.”

In an interview with Catholic publication Crux posted on Wednesday, April 24, Father Roger Landry expressed “concern and sadness over what’s happening,” and “division, hostility and class warfare are being fomented, and various outside elements are trying to use Columbia as a backdrop to push their political agendas,” he said in an April 22 email to Crux, the publication reported.

Although protests over the war in Gaza have occurred since Hamas’s violent incursion into Israeli territory on October 7, 2023, the current round of demonstrations has been largely pro-Palestinian. Incidents of violence and violation of orders to vacate university areas have led to arrests. Columbia University has informed students they may attend classes remotely for the remainder of the semester if they feel unsafe. Classes end officially on May 2, followed by exams May 3-10.

Father Landry said that in order for students of all backgrounds to feel safe again, that the university “must first ensure that such malevolent protests, brimming with anti-Semitism, be stopped.”

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